The perfume that promises to make you thin

They say that a good perfume can make you feel a million pounds, but what if it could help you lose a few too? Velds' Prends-Moi promises to do just that.

A pleasant blend of bergamot, mandarin, lilac and ylang ylang, this innovative zesty, floral fragrance also has some pretty pleasing side effects, by way of weight loss and appetite curbing. According to its creator, Prends-Moi (take-me', in French) will “slim with pleasure”.

Wait, what: a perfume that slims and sculpts? Yes really, say the scientists at the Centre of Biological Research and Cutaneous Experimentation, who were involved in the trials.

So how does it work? By way of the aromatherapeutics and ‘neurocosmetic’ say the researchers. A pretty ordinary scent from the outside (and the packaging needs a bit of work) Prends-Moi contains feel-good chemicals which trigger the release of endorphins, the happy hormone: ergo less emotional eating.

Take the scent’s naturally-derived Betaphroline for example, a chemical which boosts the production of B-endorphins when it comes into contact with keratinocytes on the outer layer of the skin.

“Prends-Moi sends pleasure messages through the neurotransmitters to the hippocampus, the ‘odour brain’, which triggers the immediate sensation of well-being, a reduction in stress and an increase in contentment, reducing the need to overeat and the scent’s slimming action is activated,” explains its creator, ex-model Joyce Musy.

In studies, after 28 days of wearing the scent, 75 per cent of women between 18 and 75 agreed that Prends-Moi reduced the need to snack, while 70 per cent of wearers thought that the scent had changed their eating behaviours. And all for £15 for 100ml, from The Fragrance Shop.

But if you're looking for an easy way out of your winter weight gain, then you'll have to play another kind of wait game first. As Adam Anderson, buying director at The Fragrance Shop explained when Prends-Moi first launched: “Before agreeing to stock the fragrance we sampled this in-house on a number of our staff who were all keen to get their hands on it – and they are all pleased with the results!

We knew we loved it, and found that our customers did too. We now have a waiting list for the fragrance in excess of 6,000 people.”